Schuylkill County wants those interested in buying its award-winning nursing home, Rest Haven, to tell it why they should own the facility, and how they would pay for and operate it.

On Monday the county made the request for qualifications and proposals document available on its website,

www.co.schuylkill.pa.us.The document can also be obtained by sending a message to the Harrisburg law firm of Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, which is acting as the county's special counsel for the sale, at

resthaven@eckertseamans.com.The county will accept responses to the request through Oct. 31. The responses must be sent to Eckert Seamans, at 213 Market St., 8th Floor, Harrisburg, PA 17101.Between Oct. 31 and Jan. 16, 2015, potential buyers will tour the facility, and the county will review proposals.County commissioners laid down some ground rules for potential buyers: The buyer must continue Rest Haven's tradition of providing a high quality of care and quality of life for its residents; it must secure access to long-term care for the indigent and vulnerable communities within the county; it must ensure the long-term care needs of all county residents are met into the future; it must reduce costs to taxpayers and maximize the return on the public's investment in Rest Haven; and it must facilitate a fair and equitable transition to the private sector for county employees, including ensuring current Rest Haven employees first consideration for employment with the new operator.The 142-bed nursing home sits on 55 acres off Route 61 in Schuylkill Haven, behind the Penn State University's Schuylkill campus. It has its own website,

www.resthavennursing.com. The facility offers nursing and rehabilitation services, Alzheimer's and respite care.U.S. News & World Report recently recognized Rest Haven in its 2014 list of the Best Nursing Homes in Pennsylvania. The list is available at

http://health.usnews.com/best-nursing-homes/area/pa.On Aug. 20, county commissioners hired the law firm to market Rest Haven, which is running $4.6 million in the red. The home employs 113 full-time and 130 part-time workers, and has been steadily losing money over the past several years. The main leak is that 84 percent of the facility's patients rely on Medicaid, which reimburses the facility $172 per day. The actual cost of care, however, comes to $221 per day.Money owed the nursing home $853,176 as of August has not been collected, county officials said. Employees' retirement costs also factor in. The county pays Rest Haven retirees full health benefits until they turn 65.Between 2008 and 2013, Rest Haven's operating expenses increased by 16 percent, from $10.7 million to $12.5 million. Meanwhile, its revenue grew by 1 percent. The county has given and loaned money to Rest Haven, about $2 million as of last month.